---
title: "Recycle bin settings"
slug: "recycle-bin-settings"
tags: ["Reference", "Site Administrator", "Totara Learn"]
updated: 2026-08-13T16:01:25Z
published: 2026-08-13T16:01:25Z
canonical: "totara.help/recycle-bin-settings"
---

> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://totara.help/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Recycle bin settings

You can configure the following [recycle bin](/totara-20/docs/what-is-the-recycle-bin) settings by going to *Quick-access menu > Plugins > Admin tools > Recycle bin*.

| **Setting** | **Description** | **Notes** |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Enable course recycle bin | Check this box to enable the course recycle bin, which is where you will be able to find deleted activities. | - |
| Item lifetime | Select the number of weeks, days, hours, minutes or seconds to determine how long deleted items will remain in the course recycle bin. | By default items will be [available to restore](/totara-20/docs/restore-content-from-the-recycle-bin) for one week. |
| Enable category recycle bin | Check this box to enable the category recycle bin, which is where you will be able to find deleted courses. | - |
| Course lifetime | Select the number of weeks, days, hours, minutes or seconds to determine how long deleted courses will remain in the category recycle bin. | By default courses will be [available to restore](/totara-20/docs/restore-content-from-the-recycle-bin) for one week. |
| Auto hide | Enable this setting to automatically hide the link to the recycle bin when the bin is empty. | Enabling this setting means the link will only appear once a course or activity has been deleted. |

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